Apparatus for cooling bearings



Aug. 9, 1949.. w. H. BAGLEY ET AL APPARATUS FOR COOLING BEARINGS 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS WILLIAM H.BAGLEY' BY WINFIELD SENDERICH MJMwZM L Filed Sept. 28, 1942 ATTORNEYS g- 1949. w. H. BAGLEY ET AL 2,478,357

APPARATUS, FOR COOLING BEARINGS Filed Sept. 28. 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 G FIGS.

" INVENTORS WILLIAM H. BAG LEY WINFIELD S. ENDERICH ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 9, 1949 APPARATUS FOR COOLING BEARINGS William H. Bagley and Winfield s. linderich, De-

troit, Mich, assignors to Bohn Aluminum & Brass Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application September 28, 1942, Serial No. 460,008

8 Claims. 1

The invention relates to means for rapidly and uniformly chilling highly heated metallic bodies, being more particularly designed for use in the manufacture of journal bearings. One type of bearing which is largely used for aircraft engines is formed of an outer reinforcing shell of steel and a lining of bearing metal therein consisting of a copper lead mixture or similar material. It has been found that the physical properties of such lining mixture are greatly benefitted by rapid cooling through the exterior of the shell of the highly heated molten metal. This results in the formation of a very fine texture including copper dendrites extending radially inward from the shell and holding the lead therebetween. It is, however, necessary that this cooling should be uniform throughout the extent of the bearing, as otherwise soft spots may develop in certain areas thereof, which will limit the life of the bearing. Such uniformity of chilling is very difficult to accomplish and many methods and structures which have heretofore been used have not been fully satisfactory.

Another defect frequently occurring in bearings so manufactured is due to the inclusion of gas bubbles or impurities in portions of the bearing metal.

It is the object of the invention to avoid the defects above referred to and to this end the invention consists, first, in the method and, second, the apparatus as hereinafter set forth.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the apparatus;

Figure 2 is an end elevation thereof;

Figure 3 is a plan view;

Figure 4 is a vertical cross section;

Figures 5 and 6 are views similar to Figure 4 showing the parts in different positions Of adjustment; and

Figure 7 is a cross section on line '|l, Figure 6.

Where the body to be chilled is at a temperature much higher than the boiling point of the liquid coolant it is difficult to maintain contact between said coolant and all portions of the surface of the body. This is because a film of vapor will be formed and interposed between the metal and the liquid, preventing direct conduction of heat and limiting the dissipation to radiation. Attempts have been made to avoid such result by directing sprays of liquid against the surface to be chilled, but her-e again it is difficult to produce uniform treatment of all portions of said surface. We have overcome this difiiculty by directing an annular stream of liquid against an annular portion of the surface to be chilled and by progressively advancing the surface axially of said stream until all portions have been subjected to the chilling action. A further feature of our invention is such that such annular stream is conical or directed obliquelyinward and downward with respect to the axis-of the bearing and is first broughtin contact with the lower end portion of the bearing. The relative movement of the bearing and stream is such as to progressively chill in an upward direction with respect to the bearing so that the portions first chilled continue in contact with the liquid for further cooling during the remainder of the treatment. Also, by thus chilling from the bottom upward any gas bubbles or other impurities included in the molten metal will be forced upward instead of being entrapped.

To carry out the method above described, we have devised an apparatus consisting essentially of a hollow annulus containing water under predetermined pressure, said annulus having a slit extending completely around its inner wall through which a sheet of water is expelled in a conical form. The work to be chilled is moved downward concentric with the axis of the cone so thatthe water sheet will simultaneously contact the work through a complete circle. This during the downward feed of the work will wipe the entire external surface thereof.

More in detail, A is the hollow annulus which is divided into an outer and inner compartment by a wall A having a circular series of small apertures A therethrough. The inner compartment A has its bottom A slightly spaced from the inner side wall to form an annular slit A This bottom is also provided with an inwardly projecting, upwardly extending conical portion A terminating in a downwardly extending conical portion A' cut away to form a central aperture A. This aperture is slightly larger in diameter than the external diameter of the work to be chilled so as to permit the lowering of the work therethrough and in the center of the conical water sheet.

The construction just described is mounted on a suitable frame B, which also has mounted thereon a hydraulic cylinder motor C located in rear of the annulus A and having a piston rod D extending downward therefrom. At the lower end of this rod is a bracket arm E which extends laterally therefrom and has mounted at its outer end a rod F concentric with the axis of the annulus A. The bracket E is also attached to guide rods G, G on opposite sides of the rod D and slidably engaging bearings H, H on the frame B. The arrangement is such that the rod F will be held exactly concentric with the axis of the annulus and will be moved upward and downward through the center of the aperture A by the operation of the motor C. At the upper end of the rod F is a suitable holder F for receiving the lower end of the work, which latter, as indicated at I, is of externally cylindrical form.

In addition to the structure thus far described, the apparatus is provided with a motor actuated pump J for propelling the liquid coolant, preferably water, through a conduit J into the outer compartment of the annulus A. From this compartment it will pass through the series of apertures A into the inner compartment A so as to maintain uniform pressure within the latter. This in turn will expel a uniform sheet of water through the slit A which passes upward over the apex of the cone and then downward over the conical surface A and through the aperture A.

For operating the hydraulic motor C there is provided a tank K for the oil or other fluid, a pump L operated by a motor L', a flow control valve M, and a reversing 4-way valve N which directs the oil alternately to the upper and lower ends of the cylinder G. It is of importance to accurately control the velocity of movement of the work during its downward feed through the aperture A and this is accomplished by the flow control valve M. It is also of importance that the work should remain in its lowered position for a predetermined interval of time after completion of its downward movement, thereby completing the cooling by a flow of water downward over all portions of the external surface of the work. This is accomplished by a timing device controlling the operation of the reversing valve N. Preferably this reversing valve is electromagnetically operated, and an electric timer 0 is used for controlling the same. As the specific construction of these controlling devices is not a part of our invention, they will not be described further in detail.

Operation The work to be chilled has an external uninterrupted cylindrical surface, this forming the reinforcing shell for the bearing. There is also a tubular core member and a bottom welded to the shell and together therewith constituting a mold for the molten bearing metal. This structure is first placed in a furnace and heated to a high temperature. The superheated molten metal is then poured in to fill the space between the core and shell, after which the structure is placed on the holder F which positions it slightly above and coaxial with the conical surface A". A push button switch P is then operated to energize the motor L and simultaneously energize the motor pump J. The motor L operates the oil pump L, propelling fluid to the upper end of the cylinder motor C. This will move the piston in said motor downward and through the connections previously described will lower the rod F and work holder F. The flow control valve N has been adjusted to govern the velocity of downward movement of the piston, this determining the rate of movement of the work downward in the center of the conical stream. Initially this stream contacts the lower end portion of the bearing and its angle is such that it will not move upward on the cylindrical surface. However, as the bearing descends, the contact of the stream progressively moves upward relative thereto until slightly below the upper end of the bearing. Further movement is then arrested, preferably by an adjustable stop Q which, as shown, is a screw-threaded rod passing through a cross bar Q between the upper ends of the guide rods G, G and contacting with the upper end of the cylinder C. When movement is arrested the fluid from the pump L, which is still in operation, passes through a relief valve R and returns to the tank K, but the valve N still remains in the same position. Thus the Conical stream of water will continue to flow downward over the entire surface of the cylindrical shell until it is completely cooled. The length of time that the bearing remains stationary is controlled by the-timer P which may be adjusted to suit the particular work that is being chilled. At the end of the interval the electromagnetic valve N is operated to reverse the same, which admits fluid from the pump L into the lower end of the cylinder C and the exhaust from the upper end thereof returning it to the tank K.

As previousiy described, the essential feature of the operation is that the conical sheet of coolant liquid simultaneously contacts every point in a circular zone of the surface of the work, and due to its downward direction will instantaneously carry away any vapor bubbles that may be generated. Also the timed downward movement of the work will -atively move this contact zone upward, while downward movement of the stream ccntinuucs to wipe over the previously contacted surface. The result is perfect uniformity in cooling of all portions of the bearing, while the progressive upward movement in the freezing of the molten metal will eject therefrom all gas bubbles and other impurities. The object of first directing the coolant sheet conically upward and then conically downward is that this gives greater uniformity in thickness and velocity in the descending sheet.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. An apparatus for rapidly and uniformly chilling highly heated cylindrical bodies comprising a hollow annulus having a circumferentially extending slit in its inner surface and a centrally apertured conical surface extending downward therefrom the space above said conical surface being unobstructed, means for supplying a liquid coolant to said annulus to form a liquid sheet flowing downwardly over said conical surface and through the central aperture therein, and means for lowering the work downward through said aperture in coaxial relation thereto.

2. An apparatus of the character described, comprising a hollow annular member, a partition in said member dividing the same into an outer and inner compartment, a circular series of apertures through partition forming communication between compartments, a member forming the bottom of said inner compartment spaced from the inner wall thereof to form an annular slit, said member being inwardly extended to form successively upwardly and downwardly directed conical surfaces, with a central aperture in the latter and the space above said surfaces being unobstructed, means for supplying the outer compartment of said annulus with liquid coolant under predetermined pressure, a work carrier, and means for lowering said carrier coaxially through said aperture.

3. An apparatus of the character described comprising a frame, a hollow annulus mounted thereon having a circumferentially extending slit in its inner surface and a downwardly directed, centrally apertured conical surface radially inward from said slit with the space thereabove unobstructed, a hydraulic cylinder motor mounted on said frame having a downwardly extending piston rod, a bracket extending laterally from the lower end of said rod, a rod extending upwardly from said bracket through said aperture and in coaxial relation to said annulus, a work holder at the upper end of said rod, means for supplying coolant liquid under pressure to said annulus whereby an annular stream of liquid is ejected through said slit to flow downward over said cone, and means for operating said hydraulic motor to progressively lower said work holder through said aperture within and concentric to the axis of said conical stream.

4. An apparatus of the character described comprising a hollow annulus having a circumferentially continuous slit in its inner surface, an upwardly extending conical surface adjacent to the bottom of said slit, a centrally apertured conical surface extending downward from the apex of said upwardly extending conical surface the space above said conical surfaces being unobstructed, means for supplying liquid coolant to said annulus whereby a continuous liquid sheet flows through said slit first upward and then downward over said conical surfaces, and means for relatively lowering the work through said aperture in coaxial relation thereto whereby the zone of contact of said sheet with the surface of the work is progressively moved upward.

5. An apparatus of the character described comprising a hollow annular member provided with a circumferentially continuous slit in its inner surface, means for supplying liquid coolant to said annulus to flow inward therefrom through said slit, a centrally apertured conical surface over which the liquid sheet flows downward the space above said conical surface being unobstructed, means for lowering the work to be chilled downward through said central aperture and in coaxial relation therewith, means for controlling the velocity of said downward movement, means for arresting said downward movement when the zone of contact of said sheet is near the upper end of the work, and means for holding the work in this position for a predetermined time interval during the continued flow of said liquid sheet.

6.In an apparatus of the character described, a hollow annular member, a partition in said member dividing the same into an outer liquid coolant receiving compartment and an inner compartment, a circular series of apertures through said partition forming communication between said compartments, and a member forming the bottom of said inner compartment spaced from the inner wall thereof to form an annular slit, said member being inwardly extended to form successively upwardly and downwardly directed conical surfaces with a central aperture in the latter and the space above said surface being unobstructed.

7. An apparatus for cooling a heated body comprising an inwardly and downwardly extending conical surface terminating in a central aperture, means for moving a heated body axially of said conical surface through said aperture, and means for flowing a continuous annular sheet of liquid coolant downwardly over said conical surface into contact with said heated body, the space above the terminal portion of said conical surface adjacent said aperture being unobstructed to permit free escape of the vapor formed by the contact of said coolant with said heated body.

8. An apparatus for cooling a heated body comprising an inwardly extending annular member having successive upwardly and downwardly directed conical surfaces, the latter conical surface terminating in a central aperture, means for moving a heated body axially of said conical surfaces through said aperture, and means for flowing a continuous annular sheet of liquid coolant successively over said upwardly and downwardly directed conical surfaces into contact with said heated body, the space above the terminal portion of said downwardly directed conical surface adjacent said aperture being unobstructed to permit free escape of the vapor formed by the contact of said coolant with said heated body.

WILLIAM H. BAGLEY. WINFIELD S. ENDERICH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,211,277 Bloom Jan. 2, 1917 1,337,465 Olson Apr. 28, 1920 1,521,390 Reynolds Dec. 30, 1924 1,782,955 Swendeman Oct. 22, 1927 2,009,078 Ziska July 23, 1935 2,202,758 Denneen May 28, 1940 2,202,759 Denneen May 28, 1940 2,281,331 Somes Apr. 28, 1942 2,281,333 Somes Apr. 28, 1942 2,294,829 Bridges et a1. Sept. 1, 1942 2,295,272 Somes Sept. 8, 1942 2,307,694 Malke Jan. 5, 1943 2,318,145 Emery May 4, 1943 2,319,093 Somes May 11, 1943 2,321,431 Somes June 8, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 441,329 Great Britain Jan. 17, 1936 485,753 Great Britain May 19.. 1938 

